The right to be human: Deinstitutionalization and wishes of people with developmental disabilities

This is an exploratory analysis of the wishes of people with developmental disabilities living in both institutional and community residential placements. Those living in state schools (N = 124), nursing facilities (N = 259), ICF-MRs (N = 84) and group homes (N = 314)were asked: ''If you had one wish, what would you wish for?'' Chi-square analyses suggest that type of residential placement is related to the wishes of people with developmental disabilities. In all residential placements, wishes for social interaction in the form of visiting or having a relationship were common. However, the wishes then varied greatly by residential placement, e.g, those living in nursing facilities commonly wished to do activities, while few did so in state schools. Those in group homes commonly wished for a job or money comparatively with the three other residential placements. Those in ICF-MRs wished to move more so than the other residential placements. Overall, those in state schools and nursing facilities wished for less abstract items, while those in group homes wished for things thought to be more common for typical people out in the community. Wishes may be beneficial for studying the effects of deinstitutionalization by opening a door to the perceptions of reality held by these individuals.